About Me – Hanne Smith

To begin with….Since early childhood, I’ve felt a reverence for living things. This led to my studies in the biological sciences, with an emphasis on primate behavior. As a young woman I was privileged to observe wild baboons and chimps in the forests of Tanzania. Years later I realized that those baboons and chimps had taught me a lot about parenting and child development!

Then, the birth of my first child was so powerful and beautiful that it made me want to ‘be there’ for other women during their pregnancies and births. It took a while to find a way, but in 2008 I was trained as a DONA birth doula, and in 2009 I received my certification.

And now….I’ve had the privilege of assisting with a variety of births: singles and twins; vaginal and caesarian; short and long labors; medication-free and medication-assisted; in-home and in-hospital.

In both the Trail and Nelson hospitals I do my best to strike a balance that is supportive of the mother and her partner and also respectful of the medical staff. I have fit in well as a member of the mother’s care team, and find that I am compatible with the nurses, doctors, midwives, anesthetists and OBs that I’ve met. Achieving this kind of balance is ultimately most helpful to the mother — and that is the whole point!

Soon I will be dividing my time between Rossland, B.C., and Corvallis, Oregon. I'm looking forward to learning about birth practices in Corvallis, and to offering doula services there for several months each year. Click here for more information about my schedule in 2018.

And further…I constantly seek information and methods that will help the mothers I serve to have the best births possible given their unique circumstances. With that in mind, I have taken more training, and now have more skills and services to offer…

PreNatal classes: I am certified as a Lamaze Childbirth Educator, and teach PreNatal classes through Selkirk College, in Trail, B.C. For information about the Selkirk College childbirth education classes, click here.

Hypnosis for childbirth classes: I am also certified as a Hypnobabies instructor and Hypno-doula. I completed the Hypnobabies training in 2012, and am available to teach childbirth hypnosis courses to expectant couples in Corvallis, Oregon (December 2017 - early April 2018) and in the Kootenay region (mid-April 2018 - November 2018). For more information about Hypnobabies and my Hypnobabies classes,click here.

Techniques: I use acupressure points to help with starting labor, turning posterior babies, and increasing comfort. I also have training in use of the Spinning Babies techniques for helping babies to move into optimal positions for birth.

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